Providing instruction and training from a single location to remotely-located students, employees, technicians, etc. over a communication system is well-known in the art, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,850,250 (Konopka et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,468 (Guy et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,042 (Lewis et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,867,653 (Aras et al.).
Interactive distance learning systems, where teacher and student can interact, are also known in the art such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,537,141 (Harper et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,576,844 (Anderson et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,730 (Lasker, III et al.); 5,263,869 (Ziv-EI); U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,555 (Ziv-EI); U.S. Pat. No. 5,802,284 (Karlton et al.) discloses a computer-based system and method for providing immediate feedback to the user in an interactive television system. U.S. Pat. No. 4,652,240 (Wackym) discloses a computer interactive training system that gives the instructor the ability to dynamically demonstrate every input being displayed on his/her monitor on the student's monitor. See also U.S. Pat. No. 4,715,818 (Shapiro et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,785,472 (Shapiro). U.S. Pat. No. 4,622,013 (Cerchio) discloses an interactive software training system for achieving computer-based software training for any user-selected software program. See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,395,243 (Lubin et al.). U.S. Pat. No. 5,820,386 (Sheppard II) discloses an interactive educational apparatus. U.S. Pat. No. 5,325,423 (Lewis) discloses an interactive multimedia communication system that can be utilized with a telephone network, a similar switched network or in combination with a broadcast network (e.g., satellite or cable). U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,788 (Lemelson et al.) discloses an interactive instructional system that includes microprocessor-controlled base station for use by an instructor and/or computer and a plurality of input devices each for use by a student. Among other things, the instructor can continuously tailor the course to the learning speed of the class.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,283,638 (Engberg et al.) discloses a multimedia computing and telecommunications workstation that utilizes a workstation that combines telecommunications circuitry and multimedia circuitry which permits operating these two circuitries for a variety of business and entertainment purposes. See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,283,819 (Glick et al.).
U.S. Pat. No. 5,310,349 (Daniels et al.) discloses a virtual school user interface running on networked personal computers for providing administrative and instructional functions to users in a scholastic environment. U.S. Pat. No. 5,506,954 (Arshi et al.) discloses a personal computer conferencing system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,627,978 (Altom et al.) discloses a graphical user interface, i.e., a multimedia communications application program for setting up and handling a multimedia call in a virtual conference on a desktop computer conferencing system.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,577,208 (Couturier) discloses multimedia intercommunications between computer workstations having an auxiliary unit that is directly connected to the output of the workstation and the display input wherein local and remote image data are combined.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,772,446 (Rosen) discloses a system which includes a note-making facility, a mentor facility and an editor facility.
The use of videoconferencing is known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 4,360,827 (Braun); U.S. Pat. No. 4,414,621 (Bown et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,650,929 (Boerger et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,710,917 (Tompkins et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,882,743 (Mahmoud); U.S. Pat. No. 5,272,526 (Yoneta et al.) discloses a television conference system; U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,306 (Watanabe); U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,972 (Kannes); U.S. Pat. No. 5,767,897 (Howell); U.S. Pat. No. 5,872,923 (Schwartz et al.) discloses a video conference system wherein multiple parties at different locations can view, and modify, a common image on their computer displays. U.S. Pat. No. 5,491,508 (Friedell et al.) discloses a personal computer video conferencing system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,657,246 (Hogan et al.) discloses a graphical user interface that allows a "windows" type operations to control various aspects of a video conference.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,786 (Easterbrook) discloses a system for instructing a pupil whereby one video monitor has a split screen facility to display in comparing relationship instructor and pupil images.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,847,709 (Card et al.) discloses a three-dimensional workspace for interacting with large numbers of document objects.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,520 (Hamilton) discloses a computer-assisted instructional delivery system and method, thereby allowing a teacher to share an electronic sheet of paper with one or more students in a classroom. See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,239,373 (Tang et al.). U.S. Pat. No. 5,857,189 (Riddle) discloses a system and method for enabling teleconferencing members to share files during a teleconference.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,609,358 (Sangster) discloses a video training system for simultaneously training a plurality of students but does not include a live instructor. U.S. Pat. No. 5,822,525 (Tafoya et al.) discloses a presentation system for displaying a presentation at multiple computer systems.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,587,928 (Jones et al.) discloses a computer teleconferencing method and apparatus that permits transmission of video image sources including both computer display images and other video images. See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,206,934 (Naef, III).
U.S. Pat. No. 5,059,127 (Lewis et al.) discloses a computerized mastery testing system which provides for the computerized implementation of sequential testing in order to reduce test length without sacrificing mastery classification accuracy. U.S. Pat. No. 5,180,309 (Egnor) discloses an automated answer evaluation and scoring system and method; U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,749,736/5,797,754/5,890,911 (Griswold et al.) disclose a method and system for computerized learning, response and evaluation. U.S. Pat. No. 5,752,836 (Clark et al.) discloses a method for reporting groupings of answers to test questions. U.S. Pat. No. 5,827,070 (Kershaw et al.) discloses a computer based testing system that includes a test development system for producing a computerized test, a test delivery system for delivering the test to the examinee, and a workstation on which the computerized test is delivered to the examinee.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,204,813 (Samph et al.) discloses a computer-controlled testing process and device for administering an examination. U.S. Pat. No. 5,513,994 (Kershaw et al.) discloses a centralized administrative system of administering standardized tests to a plurality of examinees. See also U.S. Pat. No. 5,259,766 (Sack et al.). U.S. Pat. No. 5,321,611 discloses a system for increasing the speed at which test answers are processed. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,458,493/5,690,497 (Clark et al.) discloses a dynamic on-line scoring method.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,810,605 (Siefert) discloses computerized repositories applied to education.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,879,165 (Brunkow et al.) discloses a method of using a computer for creating and comprehensively analyzing in an integrated manner a test and course of study or job performance, assessing multiple transferrable skills within the context of course competencies at the individual test assessment level.
A company by the name of Edutest.com offers on-line subscription services concerning various school-related assessment services such as testing and drilling on subject matter such as math and English.
However, there remains a need for a system and method that provides interactive instruction to remote student locations whereby the instructor can be virtually positioned on the subject matter being taught (e.g., a software application) in a display screen being watched by the students. There also remains a need for a system and method of testing these students from remote locations, of modifying such testing on the fly, and being able to instantaneously evaluate the test results, correlate them and then instantaneously provide the results to both the students and their employers.